Unexplainable.net

The O'Neill Cylinder - Humanity's Home Away from Home?

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 05:38:07 PST

Very few constructions proposed by scientists are nearly as ambitious as one project designed by a Physicist utilizing the help of his students. Gerard K. O’Neill’s proposal suggests something so large and so monumental that many scientists can’t imagine ever accomplishing it. Of course it should be noted that “impossible” is a word that scientists have a way of reinterpreting as time goes on.

Judge: UFO Hacker Extradition to be Resolved

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:15:05 PST

After ten years of battling the legal system to keep from being extradited to the US, a judge has ordered that the case of accused hacker Gary McKinnon be resolved either now or never with authorities either allowing him to be extradited or not. McKinnon, who is widely considered the most sought hacker in the world after hacking into NASA and Pentagon computers in 2001 and 2002 is currently wanted in the US for seven counts of hacking. His motivation, he says, was to uncover secrets on UFOs.

Incredible Near Miss Asteroid to Zoom Past Planet

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 13:34:03 PST

It's the scene in the disaster movie where the plot really starts rolling. At 4:30 in the morning a phone rings and a respected astronomer receives a call informing him that an asteroid is heading toward Earth. After a moment of talk, the astronomer looks dead into the distance and makes an expository appeal that this is "the big one." Only in the case of 2012 BX34, the phone call ended far less dramatically.

The Three Hard Science Aliens We Don't Want to Meet

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 05:19:09 PST

One of the most daunting tasks in both space travel and speculation merges the two in trying to accurately describe what an alien race would be like if we actually did meet them - explaining their complex system of travel as well as their ability to survive the long journey that would last years between the stars. And as our understanding of the scale of the universe around us becomes more concrete, so have the channels through which potential alien visitors have been described. And in doing, three different theoretical types of alien visitors have arisen that humanity may do well to avoid contacting.

Russian Photo of "Trilobyte" on Venus Surfaces

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 19:31:08 PST

The thick veil of Venus has been for years a barrier between inquiring minds and the surface of this planet hostile to human life. And even as eyes turned to scrutinize the surface of Mars, Venus has been seen as a planet far too inhospitable to ever host life - or at least life as we would understand it. But this shocking image retrieved from Russia's 1982 Venus mission suggests that the probe encountered something while on the surface that may give validity to recent claims that Venus may host life.

The Future of Yesterday - When Futurists Got it Wrong

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 07:25:16 PST

Even as 2012 arrives and uncertainty about the future abounds, technology is getting more incredible by the month. And yet even as the trend of broad strides toward high tech continues, there have been many attempts by the past to look into the future with open minds and open hearts. And as these hopeful images of the future past are played again, maybe we can get some idea of which technologies of today may be made manifest tomorrow - and which ones might be forever fantasy. Here are a few examples of how yesterdays prognosticators got it all wrong - and a few uncannily accurate predictions as well.

Putin Speculates Over Phobos Grunt Conspiracy

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 14:01:35 PST

The word grunt in Russian means ground. But when the ill fated Phobos Grunt was launched in December of 2011, no one knew how quickly the $163 million probe would be grounded permanently. But as speculation over the device's fate increases as it slowly spirals back to Earth, a few are questioning whether the Grunt could have been shot down or in some other way sabotaged. But what was Putin referring to when he said he knew there were powerful secret weapons that could have shot it down?

Universe Far More Planet Populated Than Previously Thought

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 21:47:06 PST

It has long been theorized that other stars could have planets just like our Sun, but it wasn't until a few years ago when astronomers began gathering evidence of extrasolar planets suggesting that the universe as we know it may be much more habitable than we once thought. And now a new analysis suggests that on average every star could have its own planets - and some among them may very well be like Earth. The analysis is yet another bridge in the gap between humanity and the populated but silent universe suggested by the Drake Equation.

NASA Develops Comet Slaying Space Harpoon

Thu, 15 Dec 2011 19:51:34 PST

The idea of harpooning a comet seems in some way similar to the story of Moby Dick and the Great White Whale. But as humanity's ambitions escalate to titanic proportions, a new development by NASA will make safe what would ordinarily be an extremely dangerous mission - the harpooning of an entire comet as it soars through space.

Daytime Lunar Eclipse: Don't Worry, Physics Isn't Broken

Sun, 11 Dec 2011 10:40:53 PST

Here's a brainteaser that left some sky-watchers scratching their heads when the moon suddenly and unexpectedly went black during the daytime in an impossible astronomical display. Why is it impossible to see a Lunar Eclipse during a perfectly cloudless day? Conventional wisdom suggests it's because Lunar eclipses happen when the Earth, the Sun, and the Moon make a straight line. So what often overlooked law of physics made it possible for witnesses in the Rocky Mountains to see both the Sun and the Lunar Eclipse at the same time?

Why Are NASA's Moon Rocks Disappering?

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 10:35:09 PST

When we think of the amount of effort that went into capturing a tiny chunk of the moon, the wealth is quite a sight to see. The Apollo program resulted in hundreds of pounds of the tiny rocks being brought back to Earth for the public, but a significant number of them have gone missing - or have been outright stolen since then. NASA recently reported that it hopes to increase its inventory controls to afford better mastery over the samples returned to Earth after studying the rocks lost.

Military Unexpectedly Funds SETI Search

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 10:39:41 PST

The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, or SETI as it is more commonly known is not used to suddenly getting unexpected attention from the military - at least not as far as we know. But recently the Air Force began expanding its surveillance program not only on Earth, but in space as well - and it seems particularly interested in the Allen Telescope Array, once a key component in the search for extraterrestrial signals from space. So why the sudden interest by the military?

Space Guns and Space Invaders

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 22:51:34 PST

In the 1961 episode of the Twilight Zone, "The Invaders" we came face to face with the difference size may play between humanity and extraterrestrials in a large way. Of course it wasn't the first time the idea that aliens may be extremely small (or extremely large compared to us) but it did become a cultural staple that suggested to us that our own understanding of even the most basic things could change significantly if we were to expand beyond our own world. And a few principles in energy and time travel suggest that future explorations into time and space may not be quite as big as we once thought.

Could NASA Exploration Endanger Alien Life?

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 05:28:21 PST

NASA explorations are generally thought to be about the best parts of what being human is all about. The thrill of discovery, cooperation, and the powerful image of humanity reaching beyond its humble beginnings to stretch out into the stars is only one of numerous important elements in the Mars story. And yet it seems like the exploration of distant planets may inadvertently destroy very simple alien life if it explores without caution a place like Titan. So far they have been careful with prospective alien ecosystems, but how will we explore a planet where any single point could secretly harbor alien life?

Nine Most Habitable Places Other Than Earth Labeled

Sun, 27 Nov 2011 18:45:49 PST

Scientists have developed a way of tracking the habitability of planets where life may exist outside of Earth. And so where science was once hoping to discover life on other worlds by chance, a new system that categorically evaluates each new prospective world studied according to a series of criteria and then assesses the likelihood of each world actually harboring life has been developed.

One Small Step for Man, One Giant Leap for AI

Thu, 24 Nov 2011 20:02:37 PST

In the 1960's a space race style competition was going on internationally with the ultimate realization when man first actually made it to the moon and set foot on its surface. After this, the cold war ended shortly afterward and as a result competitions like these have seemed lest urgent. Instead, the profit driven world of more terrestrial matters has supplanted the "less profitable" ventures such as space exploration. But there may soon be an upcoming race that will be both as profitable and as promising to mankind as the space race: the race of super computing. And it may have just as much of an effect on our lives as the race into the stars - without the same limitations.

Radioactive Pluto Could Have Liquid Ocean

Thu, 24 Nov 2011 19:57:09 PST

Life on Pluto, once thought to be virtually impossible, is now being discussed - possibly for the first time after a new model has come forward suggesting the planetoid may have vast liquid oceans beneath the surface ice heated by something scientists hadn't thought of before. And even if life doesn't become part of the final equation on Pluto, the very concept of a radiation heated world is enough to give a second look at what we once thought we knew about life on other worlds.

Russian Probe to Crash Back to Earth

Fri, 18 Nov 2011 23:45:21 PST

The Russian Probe, Phobos Grunt will be crashing back to Earth within the next two months - so say Russian scientists who are disappointed at the failure of their latest project. The probe was first launched last Wednesday destined for the Martian Moon Phobos. And it seems this is only one of several ill fated Russian probes heading toward the Martian Moon only to have their journey cut short. Is there a conspiracy in the works? Or is there a more logical explanation for this strange occurrence? With scientists racing against the clock to correct the error expected to destroy the Probe entirely, it's still not entirely clear what went wrong.

Great Possibility for Life on Titan

Mon, 07 Nov 2011 22:47:02 PST

Saturns Moon Titan has had a long journey in the constant consciousness of science since its discovery in 1655 by French Astronomer Christiaan Huygens. The mystery of Titan was comparable according to many astronomers to another astronomical body which has constantly evaded even the most penetrating scrutiny of science, Venus. And as astronomers look closer at this mysterious moon of water orbiting Saturn, it appears the case for life is quickly coming together. Not only may there be an ocean beneath the icy surface, there may actually be quite a bit more.

Martian Social Experiment Ends After 500 Days

Sun, 06 Nov 2011 20:33:37 PST

Can you imagine being stuck in a small box no larger than 1,500 square feet for a period of weeks? What about for over 500 days? That's precisely what volunteers just got finished doing in a study that lasted over a year attempting to watch the movements and actions of six volunteers to see if the isolation would give them a phenomenon known among astronauts as cabin fever or "space madness." The study was an attempt to get a deeper insight into the journey to Mars.